A South Sudanese journalist and registered refugee has been deported from Egypt to South Sudan, his family said, raising concerns for his safety over allegations linking him to an opposition group.
Kennedy Nimaya was detained by Egyptian authorities on April 29 while attempting to renew his residency permit and remained in custody until he was deported to Juba on June 9, according to relatives.
His family said they have been unable to establish his whereabouts since his arrival in South Sudan and fear he may be in the custody of security agencies.
“We do not know where he has been taken since last week, whether he is being held by the police or the National Security Service,” a family member, Lado Makeila Joshua, told Radio Tamazuj.
Joshua accused the Egyptian and South Sudanese authorities of deporting Nimaya despite what he described as longstanding threats against his life.
“He was living under death threats after being falsely accused of supporting rebels,” Joshua said.
Nimaya previously worked for several South Sudanese Arabic-language newspapers, including Al-Masier and Al Masar, and also served as a journalist for Juba City Council.
His family said he was deported without due process, alleging that he was not formally notified of the decision and was denied an opportunity to appeal.
Nimaya had previously been accused by South Sudanese authorities of links to the National Salvation Front (NAS), an opposition group led by General Thomas Cirillo. His family denies the allegations.
He had been living in Egypt for several years under refugee status granted by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), according to relatives.
Family members and rights advocates said the deportation may violate the principle of non-refoulement, which prohibits the return of refugees to countries where they face persecution or threats to their lives.
South Sudan government spokesperson Ateny Wek Ateny and Egyptian authorities could not immediately be reached for comment.
The deportation comes amid growing concern among rights groups over reports of South Sudanese nationals being detained, abducted or returned from neighbouring countries to South Sudan, where they say they face political persecution.
Earlier this month, South Sudanese businessman and whistleblower Athorbey Al-Gaddhaffy-Dit, who also holds Kenyan citizenship, was abducted in Kenya and transferred to South Sudan.
Relatives and rights advocates said armed men seized Al-Gaddhaffy-Dit on June 8 after he left a casino on the outskirts of Nairobi and later transported him to Juba, where they say he is being held at the military detention facility in Giyada.
The U.N. Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan said in a 2023 report that South Sudanese security forces had conducted what it described as “extra-territorial operations” in neighbouring countries, particularly Kenya and Uganda.
The commission said the operations included alleged unlawful renditions, surveillance and threats against South Sudanese dissidents living abroad.
South Sudan’s government has repeatedly denied accusations of systematic human rights abuses.
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